L7: The Defining Tank Gun of the Cold War

In just a few years of the Second World War, tank design in the major powers advanced enormously. The Soviet Union entered the 1940s with BT-series tanks, multi-turreted T-28s, and other prewar designs, but by 1945 it was already testing the first prototypes of what would become the T-54. With its combination of a powerful 100-mm gun, strong armor protection, and good mobility, the new tank clearly outclassed most wartime medium tanks.